Of Madness and Lust
by Ganja Naraku
Summary: Their's was a love not understood by "normal" people


We can still play can't we?

xxx

Theirs was a love outside the normal bounds of society. He was a demon in human form, were one to believe the stories of his home. He himself did not deny this in the slightest. He was an animal, who once upon a time dreamed he was a man. But then she came and shattered the illusion, and the beast awoke. That night he came for them, the people who by his judgement were not worthy of life and he relished in their slaughter. A village of leaves bled crimson on the night his rage was let forth into the world. He would be forever in her debt for releasing him from the cage of petty morality. All that mattered in the end was what happened in the here and now, she had forced that realization onto him through her own lifestyle.

She was a woman shattered, her mind broken into fragments and forced together into two different poles, Mania and Dementia clawed at her very being, each demanding sovereignty over the other, each fighting for a more permanent control on the host. She herself did not deny this madness, this internal struggle that was only quelled by using the one thing the two opposing sides had in common. Their love of death, the lust of feeling the blood from a fresh corpse covering her skin, hearing the cries of pain and screaming agony as she felled enemy after enemy in glee filled combat. She was a murderess, wielding a ring-blade drenched in madness. Giggling as she ended the lives of those unfortunate to cross her and then taking her sweet time to enjoy the agonizing screams of her victims as she cut them apart joint by joint. But then he came along and gave quiet, although temporary, to her tortured mind. Uniting her twin persona in a love as pure and terrible as the killing of a newborn.

His power was what drew her to him, his capacity to kill and destroy all that annoyed them, but she stayed with him because he was the only person she'd ever met who seemed to understand her love of it all. To see past the grotesque and mangled bodies, seeing instead the art hiding within every kill. She believed the sounds of agony in the living just before their pathetic existence was ended, the sobs and moans of a person's final moments were the best, and spent minutes just listening to them, drinking in the beauty of Death's Chorus. He on the other hand preferred the opened eyes, wide with terror, the dead gleam in the frozen orbs of the broken men and women who opposed them.

To the world at large they were horrors, wandering agents of death that did whatever they wished with no fear of retribution. That was not to say attempts to end their game had not been tried. Many a warrior had been sent to check their advance and collect the ever growing bounty on the murderous lovers, yet each ended in failure, as he refused to allow any harm to come to his beloved. This wasn't to insinuate she could not look out for herself, never would even consider thinking that of her, it was just that he had become very protective of his dual-minded mate.

She on the other hand felt very little for him. Her love was nothing more or less than a violent, bloody passion that erupted whenever they went on a spree of destruction. This passion was the closest thing to love that she could muster from her twisted minds. But that was only what she wanted to believe...In truth, in her heart of black hearts, she knew she was falling for him. Something that both thrilled and terrified her. She'd always been alone, even in the service of Nightmare, she was only a tool, a vanguard for death and suffering. That was how she liked it, it made things less complex...Just send her forth and she would relish in the coming slaughter.

But with him things were different. He went out of his way to provide her with more people to kill, more lives to end by her blood stained ring, staying his hand and letting her finish them, watching with satisfaction the glee on her features with every kill. But she refused to acknowledge these feelings, they would weaken her. If she started caring for one person what was to stop her from caring for others?

She would never fall to such thoughts.

And he was aware of this. He knew that she loved him too, even if she would never admit it. She could be on her deathbed covered in blood, both her own and her last victim's, and if he asked her if she loved him her answer would still be "No." before ridiculing him for asking something so stupid. But her words were so very often betrayed by her actions, the way she would flinch when she saw him wounded, or the small blush when he used her pet name "The Misguided Angel of Death.", or that look of grudging gratitude she would give him when he quelled down a bad episode of Jolly and Gloomy's mental war.

So while she spurned his playful advances, he continued to apply the gentle pressure, certain that one way or another she'd come to accept that, yes, she did love him and that he loved her just as much.

xxx

"I am so god damned cold!" A red clad woman growled, her annoyance palpable. Her clothes were something out of a circus act, red tights that showed plenty of skin while keeping all the fun parts hidden from view. He hands and forearms were hidden behind clawed metal gloves as a large metal ring with a blood stained outer edge hung from her elbow as she whirled it about in a circular motion. She glared to her left at the blond man in brown leather armor and a white dog fur cloak before folding her arms and shivering in the winter cold. "You've gotten us lost again haven't you, you piece of shit!"

The blond sighed. "Maybe we should have that right at the last landmark after all." He rubbed his hands together and blew on them. "Ah well, we've been through worse."

"I _told_ you to find us a map!" She whined as Jolly's high pitched voice began to gain more prominence. "I swear if I start to get hungry in this forest, I'm eating you first!"

To this Naruto only smirked givng her a playful glance with lustful undertones in it as he retorted. "Is that a declaration of intent, Angel?"

He didn't even start fighting the laugh in his throat as her face turned a slight shade of red. "Idiot!" Gloomy scolded him regaining her hold on Tira's body and removing Jolly's blush. "We might freeze to death out here, and all you're worried about is trying to get in my pants? Get your priorities strait pervert!"

He grinned and gripped her wrist as she tried to slash his face with her clawed hand, and then pulled her to him, wrapping his other arm around her lithe form. As she struggled in his firm, yet gentle hold, he bit the ridge of her ear and whispered lustfully. "You know, I think you're rather cute when you get pissed off, Tira."

"Let go." Gloomy demanded.

"Say 'please'." He grinned down into her angry gaze as she lifted her foot back and rammed it forward. But Naruto was ready, side-stepping and catching the leg before picking her up bridal style. "You know, you keep saying you don't like me, but every time I touch you, your face starts going red. If you keep sending me all these mixed signals I'll start to think you like me."

"Fuck. You." She growled clawing his face and making him drop her into the cold snow. As he held his wounded face in his hands grunting in pain, she stood and continued on her way, not bothering to wait for him and doing everything she could to hide the blush that was growing on her face. How dare he make her feel like this! Trying to force her into an admission she was _not_ going to make. _And what was he talking about? Mixed signals? I've never-_ Her thought line was broken when something wet and cold hit her dead in the bare space of her lower back before dripping down to soak her undergarments. Fury coursed through both Gloomy and Jolly's veins as she turned on the blond in time to be hit in the face with another snowball.

Naruto laughed again seeing the shock and confusion on her face, his face still bleeding from the wound that was closing up rather well. "You should see your face! You look so fucking pissed!" He laughed again as he ducked down to avoid the thrown ring blade aimed for his throat. As he hit all fours he collected more snow and rose up tossing it at her as she moved to dodge it. In retaliation and not possessing another ring blade she reached down to collect some snow of her own, intending to pay him back for her now frozen crotch. Yet every time she collected the confounded ice it slid out of her metal encased hand until she let out a roar of frustration and began smacking the snow about. "Hey Tira?" She glared up at him and rolled to avoid another snowball. "You might wanna remove those gloves, get your hands dirty."

Both Tiras snarled at him as she tossed the gloves aside and at last began to succeed in collecting the snow for her attack. As she rose and tossed the weapon she was dismayed to find it kept falling apart in the air. _That's not fair! _Jolly whined as she smacked the snow about. _How is it that bastard can create those balls of ice and I can't! _Gloomy added and delivered a pointed glare as the blond laughed.

"Little tip, Tira. Compact the snow together a little better. Stays together and stings more on impact!" He called as he collected more snow and formed a few more balls of ice. Tira glared at the white stuff again and began compacting it as tight as her hands could manage. Her fingers were numb from the cold as she formed and shaped the ball of ice. Examining it she stood again and reeled back her arm, aiming as best she could at her partner who's back was to her as he continued amassing a small collection of ice. Closing her eyes she hurled the ball as hard as she could and watched as it sailed clean into the back of his head making him jump in surprise. Jolly jumped up and down in victory, pointing and laughing as Naruto wiped the remains of her snowball from his head before turning to her with a glance that she knew to mean it would be a good time to start running.

Without a word he scooped up the multiple balls in his hands and rushed at her intent on shoving them in places ice had no right being. With speed she did not think she possessed she took off into the trees laughing as he chased her like a man possessed, forgetting the icy weapons completely and falling to all fours catching up with her in mere moments. With a feral growl he lunged and tackled her waist rolling down with her on a snow covered hillside before coming to a stop and getting himself pinned by his fellow killer. She glared at him and leaned down her face inches from him. "You are an insufferable bastard Naruto."

He only smirked, leaning up and stealing a small kiss from his love. He did not expect her to return it or to take his scratched face in her hands as their tongues to begin to dual. In Tira's mind both sides had given up, there was just no way around it.

She loved him.

xxx

I've removed the lemon because, looking back, I find it distasteful. Perhaps after a time I will rewrite it.


End file.
